ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Renee Burnell, 49, of Hudson Falls, pleaded guilty to federal bank fraud and aggravated identity theft charges on Wednesday, according to the Department of Justice. The FBI called it “a scheme to defraud two banks using the personal information of the customers of her plumbing and heating business.”
According to the feds, she admitted that, between August 2019 and January 2020, she applied for lines of credit with Synchrony Bank and the Bank of Missouri using her personal information from her customers. Using those lines of credit, she would falsify purchases for her business.
All told, that means that Burnell bilked the Bank of Missouri out of $119,264.43, and took Synchrony for $13,912.
The bank fraud conviction carries up to 30 years in prison and a potential million-dollar fine. Aggravated identity theft is worth at least two years behind bars, consecutive to any other prison term. When she’s sentenced in January, she may also receive a probation term of up to five years.